Curb safety-hitch.



ALONZO BOYD, OF INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA.

CURB SAFETY-HITCH.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 10, 1907.

Application filed April 2,1907. Serial No. 366,023.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALONZO BOYD, a citizen of the United States,residing at Indianapolis, in the county of Marion and State of Indiana,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in CurbSafety-Hitches, of which the following is a specification; I

This invention relates to improvements in curb attachments for hitchingstraps, and the object of the invention is to provide a simpleinexpensive and effective device for restraining unruly horses, whichdevice can be readily applied to the ordinary bridle.

I accomplish the objects of the invention by the mechanism illustratedin the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view ofmy invention as applied to a bridle in operative position on a horse.Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a bridle-bit with my improvementattached in operative position thereto, and Fig. 3 is a perspective viewof a modified form of my device.

Like characters of reference indicate like parts throughout the severalviews of the drawing.

4 represent the rings of a bridle-bit of usual construc tion, to whichmy attachment is applied. My attachment comprises a pair of metal rods 5and 6, with fiattened and perforated inner ends which are joinedtogether by means of a hinge-pin or rivet to form the hinge 7. Both ofthe arms 5 and 6 are bent at points equi-distant from the joint 7 and ata distance from each other approximately equal to the length of the bit,to form the inverted U-shaped loops 8, which loops are to engage thebridle-rings 4 when the bars 5 and 6 are passed through the said ringsinto operative position such as is clearly shown in Fig, 2. Theremaining outer portions of the rods 5 and 6 are at right-angles to theinner hinged ends and will drop downwardly by gravity substantially asshown. Each of thes ends terminate with the respective eyes 9 and 10.

11 is an ordinary hitching-strap having the usual snap-hook at its end,and to attach the hitching-strap to my device the snap-hook 12 is passedthrough the eye 10 and then hooked into the eye 9. For greater ease andconvenience in passing the strap through the first eye 10 the latterwill preferably be made larger in diameter than the eye 9. The other endof the strap 11 will be made fast to a post or hitching-weight in theusual manner. The exertions of a restless horse, by drawing on the strap11, will tend to draw the rings 9 and 10 toward each other, in themanner shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2 which in turn causes an upwardmovement of the horizontal members of the device, as shown by dottedlines in Fig. 2, against the animals lower jaw. The harder he pulls uponthe hitchingstrap the more severe will be the pressure of my deviceagainst his jaw and the animal will soon learn to save himself pain byceasing his efforts to pull his hitching-strap loose. I

In the device shown in Fig. 2 a close hinge-joint 7 is formed whichholds the parts together more rigidly and accurately than in themodification shown in Fig. 3. In the latter construction the inner endsof the two sections terminate with eyes which are linked looselytogether. The modification shown in Fig. 3 is easier and thereforecheaper to construct than the first device.

Fig. 3 shows the ends of the arms 5 and 6 connected by means of a chain'14 having a ring 15 in its midlength for the attachment of thesnap-hook 12 of strap 11.

Having thus iully described my -invention what I claim as new and wishto secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. The combination with a bridle-bit having end-rings, of a pair offlexibly connected anglerods having U-shaped bends at the angles toreceive the rings of the bridle-bit,

said angle-rods having eyes at their free ends and a hitch strap passedthrough one eye and fastened to the other eye.

2. The combination, with a bridle-bit, of a curb for hitching-straps,comprising a pair of angle-rods suspended at their angles from the bitbelow the lower jaw of the animal said rods being hinged togetherintermediate their points of suspension, and said rods having-end eyesopposite their hinged ends, in combination with means for drawing theeye-endsef the rods together.

In witness whereof, I, haye hereunto set my hand and seal atIndianapolis, Indiana, this, 22nd day of March, A. D. one thousand ninehundred and seven.

ALONZQ BOYD. [L. 8.]

Witnesses F. W. Wonnxnn, J. A. MINTURN.

